Dance review: Arianne MacBean's Big Show Co.

Allan Ulrich

Updated 1:39 pm, Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Photo: Dyanne Cano

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Caption (l to r): The Big Show Companys Angeline Attwell, Max Eugene, Genevieve Carson and Brad Culver in Arianne MacBean's "The People Go Where the Chairs Are," in its San Francisco premiere at ODC Theater June 26-28, Photo by Dyanne Cano. less

Caption (l to r): The Big Show Companys Angeline Attwell, Max Eugene, Genevieve Carson and Brad Culver in Arianne MacBean's "The People Go Where the Chairs Are," in its San Francisco premiere at ODC Theater ... more

Photo: Dyanne Cano

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Members of The Big Show Co., Angelina Atwell, Brad Culver, Genevieve Carson and Max Eugene, dance in Arianne MacBean's "The People Go Where the Chairs Are," in its San Francisco premiere at ODC Theater June 26-28. Photo by Dyanne Cano less

Members of The Big Show Co., Angelina Atwell, Brad Culver, Genevieve Carson and Max Eugene, dance in Arianne MacBean's "The People Go Where the Chairs Are," in its San Francisco premiere at ODC Theater June ... more

Photo: Dyanne Cano

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(l to r) Max Eugene, Genevieve Carson, Angelina Attwell and Brad Culver of The Big Show Co. in the world premiere of Arianne MacBean's "Present Tense." The troupe is making its San Francisco debut at ODC Theater through June 28.

(l to r) Max Eugene, Genevieve Carson, Angelina Attwell and Brad Culver of The Big Show Co. in the world premiere of Arianne MacBean's "Present Tense." The troupe is making its San Francisco debut at ODC

Whatever the ostensible subject of the work, a successful dance-theater piece depends on a balance of elements. Too much verbal material and too little movement and a piece can sink under the weight of its verbosity (unless, of course, the talk is brilliant). Then, using isolated words and syllables for an almost musical effect can be wearying if the choreography is not meticulously crafted and timed to the verbal component. Arianne MacBean's Big Show Co. seemed to wander in both directions during the Los Angeles company's San Francisco debut Thursday evening at ODC Theater.

A great deal of thought went into both the 2012 opus, "The People Go Where the Chairs Are," and the world premiere of "Present Tense." But MacBean is still struggling to find a personal movement style that sets her apart from the others. What I did discern in both pieces (and perhaps the choreographer realizes it) was a collaborative spirit let out on a slack leash. Anarchy threatens.

There was a technical problem, too. Of the company's four members (Angelina Attwell, Genevieve Carson, Brad Culver, Max Eugene), only Culver seems to have had professional acting experience, and only he orates in a modulated conversational tone. Eugene gets fewer lines and the women overproject vocally to the point where they both sound shrill, which I do not believe was the desired effect.

That said, "The People Go Where the Chairs Are," after a prelude in which the performance space is prepared with masking tape and the chapters of the work are listed on a whiteboard, offers a wry commentary on how some artists think and talk so much about a dance that it never gets completed.

The performing quartet crouches in a "talk box," seeking fulfillment through a Platonic idea of dance. The mood is sour, and once we see part of the dance, which involves performers lifting folding chairs above their heads, fractiousness dominates. Carson refuses to participate for fear of injuring her triceps.

When Attwell declares that "I wanted to make a dance with moment-to-moment integrity," you can sympathize. But then she comes down with a snit fit, violently kicking the chairs. At one point, the men, in sheer frustration, jump in place repeatedly. MacBean can be canny in anticipating our responses: "Don't speak; let the body do the talking," declares one of the performers. If only.

MacBean, who claims to have found inspiration in the notes that Thornton Wilder appended to "Our Town," ends with one of the playwright's observations: "True life is in the memory and in the imagination."

No doubt, "The People Go Where the Chairs Are" would be more potent at half the length.

Talk and a subdued jazz score by Ivan Johnson serve as collaborative elements in "Present Tense." The opening is austere. Eugene and Carson freeze in contorted poses, while Culver and Attwell propel themselves on their backs. They interrogate each other, seeking meaning, looking for affection. In time, the queries shrink to mere syllables uttered canonically and timed to gesture. Later, the tone becomes pugnacious, even hostile. Despite some engrossing moments, the Big Show Co. leaves a bitter aftertaste. That may have been the intention.

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